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By Howie Soucek

In my grandparents’ time (as they established and operated a homestead farm in the late 19th century), to be “conservative” (and thus foresightful) carried great importance, …as every scrap of metal, every piece of string, every moment of time, every bit of food—every resource—was either used immediately …or it was conserved for some other, future purpose. 

Indeed, to waste any resource was an anathema, as a threat even to their very survival. …And this was a lesson carefully taught to their children. 

So: We in Franklin once had a recycling program. But it was stopped, perhaps due to the financial problems of our service provider and/or our own budgetary constraints.  And I am here tonight to suggest to Council that ours may have been an inadequate response to the problem. I am aware that recyclables have been picked up in certain places in the City, but my comments here are regarding our curbside recycling program.

Beyond the benefit of the conservation of our resources (which is as important now as it has ever been), our recycling program also provided the opportunity for our citizens to share  in this important civic responsibility—and thus to demonstrate  conservation as an important value for our children to learn if only we would teach them—(that’s you and me, by our example);  but also, our schools should engage with other elements of the community (as they have in the past!) to develop different ways that our youths can get involved across the community in support of the cause of conservation.

Believe me, …in my dad‘s day, children were given responsibilities and directly engaged in all kinds of ways that directly supported the conservative needs of their families, neighbors, and community.

Please do not give up with the statement, “We just don’t have it in the budget.” If you have not already, find out the reasons for the problem at the service provider, regional, and state levels, …and determine the organizations, the legislative committees, and the state regulators who have the power to effect needed changes or to develop practical solutions—and you, please, communicate to them the need to do so. 

It would be well also to provide the appropriate contact information to our citizenry, a few of whom may choose as well to make their opinions known to the proper, identified authorities.

Now, some of you are aware that for me, education is a far more important topic. So, …perhaps we might then think of dismissing this recycling issue as only another little straw among the multitude on our camel’s back.

HOWIE SOUCEK is a resident of Franklin. Contact him at hownester@charter.net.